About Me

Sunday, June 27, 2010

The rain came! It was just a dose but we are grateful for every drop that we get. Rocky's watermelon patch might just make it. We are in full swing of picking black eyed and purple hull peas. Being a girl from the North, it tickles me to sell "Southern Food". I had never seen okra until I moved to Texas. We are selling about as many green tomatoes as we are red. And hats off to all of the fellows that come to the market to buy goods. I love to hear " What have you got that I can throw on the grill, I am cooking tonight!" The peaches have been heavenly we still have several trees coming on, and those blackberries just won't quit. Our Thurs and Friday noon until 5 , Saturday 10 am till 4 pm market time has worked out well. We have a table set out front with produce already prepackaged to be bought after hours. Rocky made a little money box for payment and so far everyone has been completely honest. The way I look at it, if someone needed the fruits and veggies and could not pay for them, they are welcome to them any way. A patron asked me if we were going to be open for the holiday, I told her we usually close on Christmas. She said she meant the 4th of July. Oh, is that coming soon? For farmers it is the day that you have your pumpkins planted by. Not that I do not appreciate this wonderful country and all of its benefits, but we think about that every day, and do not need a parade and fireworks to remind us. From our farmstead to your table, thank you for all of your support!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

The TOMATO FAIRY finally arrived and gave the plants a splash of red color and now we are finally picking tomatoes fresh from the vine! We have been a jump ahead of the heat and the bugs, so we should have a pretty good crop this year. We are also harvesting some of our honey, so there will be wildflower honey this week available in the market. Our days are spent trying to keep the crops and the animals watered. Rocky made a mister for the cows that he stretches out in the pasture. They all line up side by side basking in the cooling mist as it sprays from the pipe. I have been known to take a spot in between the bovines and enjoy a moment or two of refreshment. If you drive by and see a cow, a cow, a calf, a lawn chair, and another cow lined up with faces turned to the sky, tucked between two tall oak trees, you will know what is happening in the pasture. The blackeyed peas are making a good showing, we will have the u-pick for several weeks, as we staggered the planting. We still have plenty of squash, potatoes, onions, eggplant, peppers, okra, as well as blackberries and some peaches. Again our market hours are Thurs. and Friday, noon until 5:00pm. , and Saturday 10:00 am until 4:00 pm. From our farmstead to your table, thank you for all of your support

Sunday, June 20, 2010

I feel like I have been stranded on a desert isle for several days, communicating with no one but sand crabs! For a gal that is so techno challenged, I sure have gotten addicted to my computor and the internet. I hope I don't have to go through that again for a while. We are back and going with a whole new system thanks to Wal-mart and it's 24 hour open door! We are just truckin' along here at the farm. We have had the last of the baby goats this week, we are letting their mommas raise them so the automatic baby nurser is going into storage until next year. We are going to change our hours again, and I promise one of these days we will stick to what we decide on. As there is so much to do here on the farm in the mornings, milking, feeding, picking, etc., even though we start at 5:00am., it is so hard to be ready with everything by 10:00am. during the week. We are going to open on Thurs. and Friday at noon and stay open until 5:00pm. Rocky put a little air conditioner in the market, so the afternoon heat is tolerable. The hours on Sat. will remain the same, 10:00 am until 4:00 pm. I just don't go to bed Friday night! We will be starting the u-pick on the black eyed peas this week. The peas are $25.00 for a bushel if you pick them, if I pick them, you will have to mortgage your house! Actually, if you give me a couple of days notice, we will pick them for $40.00 per bushel.Call for an appointment, the early mornings are best, as it is not so hot. We should have many more than a handful of ripe tomatoes this week, as they are finally starting to turn. The blackberries are still making , but not enough for u-pick. We are already making plans to enlarge our blackberry patch as they are growing so well. It is getting close to honey harvest time, so we will soon have fresh honey. Since it is so hot, we are still in survival mode with the crops, making sure everything gets a drink now and then. It will soon be time to plant fall crops and order strawberry plants for this Oct. Time sure flies! We still have a good assortment of produce in the market. If anyone is an officianado of eggplant, have I got a deal for you! With 5 assorted varieties, they look beautiful, but WHAT TO DO WITH THEM? From our farmstead to your table, thank you for all of your support!

Sunday, June 13, 2010

My computor is going to the hospital for a few days, so just a note to let everyone know, as there will be no e-mail or contact for a little while, I will sure miss you! will let you know when we return!

It is hot as Hades outside and we are getting ready to plant pumpkins! Hopefully we might get a splash of rain to help the dry ground loosen up a bit. We are now in survival mode with all of the heat and dry weather. The okra and the black eyed peas are in heaven, the tomatoes are in stall mode,the peppers and eggplant are in high gear, and the squash and cucumbers are trying to decide to keep producing or just call it a day! The blackberries are providing plenty for the market, but not quite enough for u-pick. We are getting a few raspberries and the peaches have been delicious. Did you know that the cling variety are the first to produce? The freestone peaches are later in the season. All of our white peaches, like the Georgia Bells are a couple of weeks out , yet. The melons are coming along and we should have a good crop of cantelope and watermelons in July. Our market hours are 10:00 until noon Thurs and friday, and Saturday from 10:00am until 4:00. We now have some of Sloans Creek farms heritage meats available in the market, beef and pork. We have our own ground beef and ground goat meat also. The bees are in full honey production keeping all of the fruits and veggies polinated. We should start harvesting this years honey soon. Speaking of bees........ on hot summer days the girls find a favorite watering spot. I have a small fountain in my little garden that is the watering hole of choice for many of them. Mid day will find hundreds covering the fountain getting a drink. They cool off a bit then go back to the hive and fan the queen with their wings, the hive is kept a constant temperature of about 91 degrees. For those interested in picking black eyed peas, they will be ready in about a week, so gear up . We will pick by appt. so just give us a call. Early mornings or later in the evenings before dark are best as it is cooler. The peas will be $30.00 a heaping bushel if you pick . I will post when the snaps are ready. From our farmstead to your table, thank you for all of your support!

Thursday, June 10, 2010

And I thought watching strawberries ripen was tedious, well I forgot about how slow tomatoes are to turn bright red! We are patiently checking morning , noon and night for the first signs of a blush, and I think there a a few varieties starting to turn. For those of you waiting to make the perfect salsa, or pasta sauce from fresh tomatoes, the wait will be well worth it. Things are rockin along here at the farm, the watermelon vines are setting blossoms, the okra is blooming and oh, the black eyed peas are making little peas already. We will be doing the u-pick on the peas in a couple of weeks. The blackberries are not quite putting enough out at one time for a u-pick, but we do have some to sell in the market. Our hours are now Thurs and Fri. 10:00am until Noon and then Saturday, 10:00 am until 4:00 pm. Some of the peaches are ready, so we will have some in the market this week. My computor has influenza of some sort, so if I leave you quite suddenly, it is because it has passed out on me. I am hoping to get it fixed in a day or two. We are starting the next round of goat babies, so far all is going well. There are several girls yet to kid, then we will be through until next Spring. We have a heifer that is going to calve in about 3 weeks, so more fresh milk. Her name is Godiva, as she is chocolate colored. Wish she would give Chocolate Milk! From our Farmstead to your table , thank you for all of your support!

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

I am probably the last hold out this summer to turn on the air conditioner. Rocky is about to die! He goes to the cafe/gas station for lunch and spends about 2 hours so that he can cool off. I just hate to shut the outside world out, there is nothing like the cool morning and evening breezes coming through the open windows, and hearing the sounds of nature busy with their days activities. This time of year separates the true farmers from the wimp farmers, as it is a true test of dedication to the occupation, if you can spend a better part of the day outside doing what needs to be done this time of the year. The early summer crops are doing wonderfully, as everything is in its peak of production. The tomatoes , okra, and black eyed peas have a little while yet to go. We are picking cucumbers, peppers, green beans, onions, assorted summer squash, beets, carrots, a few peaches, and blackberries and rhubarb. The garlic is ready, and soon we will have summer melons. We have dug all of the potatoes and we have a bumper crop. We are going to extend our market hours, and will be open Thursday, and Friday from 10:00 am. until noon and Saturday from 10:00 am. until 4:00pm. Starting next week June 7. We will have dairy products available also. We are down to the last of the last honey from last fall, and will soon be harvesting this years gatherings. For those of you who have asked about cream we have a heifer that will be freshening in a few weeks, so we may have a little extra milk to gather cream from. Butter is a lost sweet memory. ( It takes a gallon of CREAM to make a pound of butter). From our farmstead to your table, thank you for all of your support!